There are many times in the production of documents, such as business forms, that it is desirable to have a background pantograph. Conventional business form composition software for this purpose, such as available from Amgraf, takes a scanned in pattern having geometric or organic shapes and repeats a pattern by repeating the geometric or organic shapes to create new patterns in order to produce a fill for the pantograph or other graphic. However there are some patterns that are not repetitious, or cannot be made by repeating geometric or organic shapes. Such patterns are very difficult to reproduce digitally with conventional business forms composition packages.
Also, some business forms manufacturers or other entities have existing patterns for producing pantographs that were created decades ago. No originals still exist of those patterns (all negatives presently existing are duplicates of the originals). Of course these patterns were produced before digital compositions using computers were available, and it is highly desirable to now be able to construct those long-standing, commonly used and requested, pantographs into digital form so that the pattern can be reproduced digitally utilizing modern equipment.
According to the present invention methods are provided that allow long existing patterns to be produced digitally, even if such patterns--or other existing patterns--are substantially incapable of construction by repeating geometric or organic shapes. That is according to the invention it is possible to produce digital images from patterns substantially incapable of construction by repeating geometric or organic shapes, and to print physical documents from the digital images so produced, which documents can be printed either in full size form (from the original pattern), or of varying sizes.
According to one aspect of the present invention a method of printing a document with a pattern substantially incapable of construction by repeating geometric or organic shapes is provided. The method comprises the steps of: (a) Scanning a positive of a pattern substantially incapable of construction by repeating geometric or organic shapes to create a high resolution digital image in a computer. (b) Interpolating the high resolution image to a low resolution digital image. (c) Storing the low resolution digital image in a computer. And, (d) printing a physical document from the image stored in step (c).
Step (a) may be practiced to produce an image having a resolution of about 1000-1400 pixels per inch (e.g. about 1200 ppi) and step (b) is practiced to produce an image of about 200-400 ppi (e.g. about 280 ppi). Also steps (b) and (c) are preferably practiced to produce and store at least two different density versions of the low resolution digital image (e.g. nominal densities of about 10% and 20%). Steps (b) and (c) may be practiced to produce and store a substantially full size version of the pattern from step (a), and step (d) may be practiced to print the image substantially full size. Alternatively, the method comprises the further steps, between steps (c) and (d), of (e) creating a rectangular tile that can be repeated substantially seamlessly, and (f) using the rectangular tile as a pattern, creating an electronic document. Step (e) is typically practiced to produce a rectangular tile having a size of between about 1200-1450 pixels (e.g. about 1325 pixels, or 1330 pixels).times.700-850 pixels (preferably about 775 pixels, e.g. 768 pixels) which translates to--in the most specific version--4.743 inches.times.2.743 inches if used at 100%.
Step (b) is practiced to destroy much of the existing halftone pattern from the positive in order to eliminate moire patterns in the final product, using a Gaussian Blur, e.g. using an approximately one pixel Gaussian Blur.
The method also preferably comprises the further step (g), before step (a), of creating the positive from a pre-existing negative by exposure to a bromide, and step (a) is practiced to scan a substantially 8 inch.times.10 inch section of the positive of the pattern. One particular pattern that is particularly suited for practice according to the invention is the SP-5043 pantograph, a pantograph originally made as negatives in the 1960s by Moore U.S.A., Inc. (formerly Moore Business Forms, Inc.) of Lake Forest, Ill.
According to another aspect of the present invention a method of printing a business form with a pattern existing in an original pantograph negative (such as SP-5043) is provided. The method comprises the steps of: (a) Making a positive from the original pantograph negative. (b) Scanning the positive from step (a) to create a high resolution digital image in a computer. (c) Interpolating the high resolution image to a low resolution digital image. (d) Creating a rectangular tile that can be repeated substantially seamlessly. (e) Using the rectangular tile as a pattern, creating an electronic document of desired size by manipulating and repeating the rectangular tile pattern. And, (f) using the electronic document, printing a physical business form having a pantograph background generally corresponding to the original pantograph negative.
Step (b) is typically practiced to produce an image of about 1000-1400 ppi (e.g. about 1200 ppi) and step (c) is practiced to produce an image of about 200-400 ppi (e.g. about 280 ppi). Other details of the practice of the various steps preferably are as described above.
It is the primary object of the present invention to provide digital patterns from pre-existing patterns substantially incapable of construction by repeating geometric or organic shapes, and for in general to provide a method of creating business forms or like documents from a pattern existing in an original pantograph negative using modern digital techniques. This and other objects of the invention will become clear from an inspection of the detailed description of the invention, and from the appended claims.